All Forum Posts by: Joseph Ziolkowski

Hi Steve,

I have seen it, but I'm actually with Kenneth on this one. I always use nails with plastic washers on them to give the sign extra stability. I don't mind getting up on the step ladder for now, so I know it's done right. In the future, when I'm a bigshot and stuff I'll hire someone else to do the same :)

If I don't have anything under contract, but just want to build my buyers list, I will actually put them in areas where I would prefer to work. That way I find buyers in those areas instead of traveling further to tailor my marketing to buyers that I already have. If I do have one under contract, I will simply put signs up in the area where the property is. Maybe a square mile or two at the busy intersections.

The only way to do that is to get out there and network. In theory, wholesaling is happening everywhere. If it can happen in Detroit of all places, you know it's happening somewhere near you. Talk with other investors in your area and see how they buy. If none of them use wholesalers, find out why.
Also, get to know your local market. Whether through a real estate agent, searching through county records, whatever. Get to learn the values. If you don't know what houses in your area are worth, you wouldn't know a good deal if bit you in the butt. Don't be discouraged. Especially in this economy, there are deals to be found.

To answer your other question, I don't know where you're from, but the assignment contract shouldn't have to be notarized or filed by you. It should be a part of the paperwork trail at the closing, done by either the closing agent or attorney, again, depending on where you are doing business. Not a lawyer here, so check it out for yourself in your area.

Hi Gabriel,

I have one as well if you would like to pm me. Also, Johnny is right. A bird dog should make more than a hundred bucks a deal. If you're going to wholesale, I would strongly recommend reading the entire wholesaling forum and maybe a book or two and becoming strongly familiar with wholesaling. It's simple, but it isn't easy, and you have to know your way around a deal. I can suggest some good, inexpensive courses if you want to pm me. No affiliate links or anything, just stuff that I've found helpful.

And in case you were wondering, two great places to get those signs at a good price are banditsigns.com and dirtcheapsigns.com. Also, check local plastic companies in your area. You might be able to get a deal there, and you won't have to pay shipping, which can be painful with large orders (signs are heavy in bulk.) I'm sure there are other great places to get them as well, but those are two of the best that I have found.

Hi Kenneth,

It's true about getting more calls with the buyer signs than the seller signs. I've had that same experience everytime and the other peoples' numbers were about right on for me too. For seller signs, because I want them to last, I always put them on telephone poles. I started with stakes, but they always disappeared within a few days. I will go out on a Friday night around 11 or 12, and here's what I take with me:

1. A step ladder
2. A hammer
3. Those nails (about 1 1/4'' long with the plastic washers on them
4. My signs.

I put them up about 8 or 9 feet high. Low enough to be read, but high enough were lazy code enforcement workers can't take them down or razor blade them easily. I use yellow, corrugated plastic 18''x24'' signs with horizontal flutes (so they stand up to wind without bending). I always hand-write them, not because it works better in my area, but because I'm too cheap to have them pre-made :) What I write on them is this:

I BUY UGLY HOUSES
CASH OR TERMS
OFFER IN 2 DAYS!
708-XXX-XXXX

Very simple and to the point.

Buyers signs I will put out on stakes over the weekend and pick them up sunday night or monday mornings. I get a little more creative with those sometimes, just because if I'm building my buyers list I really want the phone to ring.

Hope it helps!

I second Jimmy's post. Always get a non refundable deposit upfront. How much may depend upon the amount of the assignment fee and property value, but I would suggest at least $1000. That's the minimum earnest money deposit that most traditional transactions would expect. It gives the buyer a reason to show up on closing day, and if they don't, it gives you a little money to play with if you have to convice the seller to extend the contract for you.

Thanks Dan, the assessor's records is a better suggestion than the one I offered for the list. If you make nice with the people there, they are usually happy to help you find what you need. The leg work idea is also solid. Driving around your farm and getting familiar with it is a good practice by itself, and it can also get you started with some vacant property addresses, fsbo's, for rent's, etc. Aside from some gas and some basic stuff, there's no need to go crazy spending a lot of money to get yourself started.
Also try craigslist and backpage. Not only posting ads, but reading them and calling or emailing potential rehabbers/landlords. That's free and doesn't take a tremendous amount of effort. Anyone else have any good ideas for newer people to get started advertising on the cheap?

I second Will's post. People will occassionaly tell you that this is illegal, and here is what makes it ok without an RE license. When you get a property under contract and sell or assign the contract, you are a principle in the transaction. In otherwords, you have a financial interest in the property, and as such are working for yourself, not for someone else in the deal, as would an agent, who only works on the principle's behalf.